[Press Release] : FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: Calls to 911 Continue Upward Trend in 2011

[Press Releases]

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Contact: Zim Schwartze, PSJC Director
(573) 874-7400

Calls to 911 Continue Upward Trend in 2011

COLUMBIA, MO (January 30, 2012) - For the fourth consecutive year, the number of 9-1-1 calls in Columbia and Boone County has increased, according to figures compiled by Public Safety Joint Communications (PSJC).  Emergency Telecommunicators handled a total of 73,860 emergency calls in 2011, an increase of 3.9% over 2011.  

"The number of 9-1-1 calls handled by telecommunicators just scratches the surface of the workload they see every day," says PSJC Director Zim Schwartze.  "When you factor in calls to the non-emergency lines and administrative calls, our staff handled nearly 325,000 total phone interactions in 2011. With that many calls coming in, we continue to stress to our residents to remember that 9-1-1 is to be used only for life-threatening emergencies and crimes in progress." 

A non-emergency call, such as a power outage or a request to speak to a specific officer, can tie up a 9-1-1 line and delay a response to someone who really needs help.  For situations which are not life-threatening but require attention by a public safety department, please call the non-emergency number of #573-442-6131.

In another continuing upward trend, over 73% of incoming 9-1-1 calls were received from wireless phones, rather than traditional landline phones. This marks the first time that wireless calls have topped the 70% mark.  Based on 2011 statistics, Columbia/Boone County 9-1-1 emergency telecommunicators received an average of 200 emergency calls and an additional 690 non-emergency calls every day. 

Furthermore, PSJC emergency telecommunicators also processed approximately 268,000 transactions in the Computer-Aided Dispatch (CAD) system 2011.  PSJC was one of Missouri's top users of the National Crime Information Center (NCIC - a federal system maintained and operated by the FBI) and the Missouri Law Enforcement System database (MULES - a system maintained and operated by the Missouri State Highway Patrol).  Over 689,000 transactions were processed by PSJC last year.

 


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